KCNA Cloud Native Architecture Practice Question
A developer wants to deploy a function that reacts to image upload events in a cloud storage bucket. The function should scale to zero when idle. Which architecture best fits this use case?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Implement a serverless function using a FaaS platform like AWS Lambda
FaaS (Function-as-a-Service) platforms like AWS Lambda are event-driven and can scale to zero when idle, making them ideal for sporadic event-triggered workloads.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Use a long-running virtual machine to process events
Why it's wrong here
VMs are not event-driven and cannot scale to zero.
- ✗
Deploy a container on Kubernetes with HorizontalPodAutoscaler set to minReplicas 0
Why it's wrong here
Kubernetes HPA does not support scaling to zero; minReplicas must be at least 1.
- ✓
Implement a serverless function using a FaaS platform like AWS Lambda
Why this is correct
FaaS platforms are event-driven and automatically scale to zero when idle.
- ✗
Use a Kubernetes Job triggered by a CronJob
Why it's wrong here
CronJobs run on a schedule, not in response to events.
Quick reference
Cloud Service Model Comparison
| Model | You Manage | Provider Manages | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| IaaS | OS, runtime, apps, data | Hardware, hypervisor, networking | EC2, Azure VMs, GCP Compute Engine |
| PaaS | Apps and data | OS, runtime, middleware, hardware | Elastic Beanstalk, Azure App Service |
| SaaS | Data and settings only | Everything else | Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Workday |
| FaaS / Serverless | Function code only | Infra, scaling, runtime | Lambda, Azure Functions, Cloud Run |
| CaaS | Containers and apps | Kubernetes, OS, hardware | EKS, AKS, GKE |
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This KCNA practice question is part of Courseiva's free CNCF certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the KCNA exam.